ATACMS: the long-range American missiles being fired by Ukraine

The Ukrainian military has a new weapon in its arsenal, as President Joe Biden has given permission for Ukraine to begin firing U.S.-made ATACMS missiles into Russia. The Ukrainians wasted no time and shot at least six of these missiles at a weapons facility in Russia's Bryansk region, according to officials from Russia and Ukraine. Russia shot down five of these missiles, which were launched on the war's 1000th day.

Ukraine's approval by the Biden administration to use ATACMS missiles represents a significant reversal of course; the White House has previously restricted Ukrainian forces from using the long-range missile system against Russian targets. But with no end to the war in sight — and Biden preparing to cede the presidency to Donald Trump — the U.S. is hurriedly increasing its wartime assistance in the region.

What is ATACMS?

Pronounced "attack-ems," ATACMS stands for the Army Tactical Missile System. They are "ballistic missiles that, depending on the model, can strike targets 190 miles away with a warhead containing about 375 pounds of explosives," said The New York Times. The weapons are manufactured by U.S. defense company Lockheed Martin, which says ATACMS "gives commanders the immediate firepower to shape the battlespace."

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ATACMS are generally referred to as long-range missiles, but "that is a subjective term," said the Times. ATACMS can travel further into Russian territory than any other Ukrainian weapons, but "cannot travel as far as a cruise missile or intercontinental ballistic missile."

Why is Biden allowing Ukraine to use these weapons?

The ATACMS decision "follows months of pleas" by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to "allow Ukraine's military to use U.S. weapons to hit Russian military targets far from its border," said USA Today. Despite these pleas, the Biden administration had repeatedly stated that it would not permit Ukraine to use ATACMAS weapons outside of Ukraine's own borders.

However, the White House seemed to rethink this strategy after "Russia's deployment of North Korean ground troops to supplement its own forces, a development that has caused alarm in Washington and Kyiv," said USA Today. Beyond this, it is unclear how President-elect Trump will handle the war once he gets into office, meaning that Biden is looking to shore up as much support for Ukraine as possible before he leaves office.

What does this mean for the future?

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he "would regard any use of U.S.-supplied weapons against Russian territory as an attack by the United States," said Slate. Putin has also said that he would retaliate by attacking U.S. military bases in Europe if the ATACMS were continually used.

Even more notably, Putin approved a broadened nuclear doctrine that "appeared to be a thinly veiled threat to the United States and its allies over their ramped-up support for Ukraine," said NBC News. This new doctrine would allow Russia to launch a nuclear weapon if they are attacked by a non-nuclear country, such as Ukraine, that is supported by a nuclear country, like the U.S.

While moves are being made by Western forces — including the precautionary closing of the American embassy in Kyiv due to threats of air attacks — the use of ATACMS appears likely to continue in the immediate future. They also might run out by the time the Trump administration takes charge. When it comes to Putin's threats, world leaders "expressed doubts that the change amounted to much more than a new and more intense effort to deter the West," said NBC.